I drove last week from Los Angeles to Phoenix. Set my radar cruise control to 72 mph, put the throttle mode on eco and just followed whatever it was ahead of me on the slow lane. I passed them when the speed dipped below 72 mph and low and behold I got 37 mpg. That's a heck of a lot better than I ever got on my 4 cylinder Camry or my brick shaped Rav4. The drive was good. The only thing I didn't like was cleaning off all the dead bugs. The grills on these cars are a major pain in the *** to clean caked in bugs.

 

I assume you have a 350? I do and get over 31mpg overall, with largely highway miles. My best tank so far was just under 35. So 37 is great, making me a little jealous in fact.

 

Yes I have a 350. That was night driving tho so the AC wasn't on and I'm guessing the car didn't have to work as hard.
The best my 4 cylinder Camry got was 32 mpg highway and my 4 cylinder Rav4 was 28 mpg. When I go above 70 mph on the Rav4 the mpg would take a nose dive to like 24 mpg.

 

I doubt ECO does much when cruising the highway. I'm always in SPORT and get similar mpg on straight highway runs.

 

Agreed.

Unless you encounter some terrain feature where more power is needed to maintain the set speed, when highway cruising under Dynamic Range Cruise Control (DRCC) with an ES350, the ECO light indicating the engine is operating in fuel-saving Atkinson cycle mode stays illuminated almost constantly as long as you have the speed set to 85 mph or less. Also, under DRCC, it seems pretty evident that the computers are optimizing power increases and accelerations so such operations are accomplished in gradual, smooth, and most fuel-efficient means.

 

I didn't know the V6 operates in Atkinson at times.

 

That's one of the features of the 2GR-FKS engine used in the Lexus ES350 and quite a few other Lexus and Toyota models.

I can't recall where I first saw it and whether or not it was strictly described in the context of ES 350 usage. This CarBuzz article, The Multipurpose Toyota V6 Engine That's Nearly Impossible To Kill, has a fairly comprehensible description of the 2GR-FKS engine's Atkinson cycle (scroll down to the "Atkinson Cycle Capability" section). As part of a "2017 Toyota Tacoma Product Information" package Toyota filed with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, there's a NEW FEATURES – 2GR-FKS ENGINE attachment that has some information on the 2GR-FKS's Atkinson cycle feature. Strictly speaking, 2GR-FKS's implementation is a pseudo Atkinson cycle since it is only the effective compression length of the compression cycle that is altered through variable valve timing; whereas, a true Atkinson cycle engine physically changes the actual compression length of the engine's compression cycle.

Upon further research, it looks like I've picked up a bit of misinformation on a direct linkage of the ECO status light and the engine's operating in Atkinson cycle mode. I can't find anything authoritative where the ECO status light indicates the engine is operating in Atkinson cycle mode. Best as I can determine, the engine can be operating in the Atkinson cycle mode whether or not the ECO status light is illuminated.

 

Now it's beyond my pay grade but I'm pretty certain our RX hybrid runs on Atkinson whenever ICE is on.

 

I think you are correct that the engine can be operating in the (Psudo) Atkinson Cycle whether or not the ECO status light is illuminated.
I found a description (below) for operation of the ECO light. It would appear the ECO light is related to an algorithm that illuminates ECO mode based on accelerator pedal angle, which would not necessarily correlate with the Atkinson cycle. Rather ECO mode is Lexus' interpretation of an acceptable throttle position (allegedly as a function of time to account for acceleration) for good fuel economy.
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"The RX monitor its fuel economy and has an eco driving indicator light as well as an eco driving indicator zone display to help you drive economically. The eco driving indicator light automatically judges the rate of acceleration based on the angle of the accelerator pedal if it senses economical acceleration it illuminates the green eco driving indicator light on the instrument panel. Aggressive driving is indicated when the eco bar and the multi-information display flashes. The eco driving indicator light can also be switched off. Press the malting information page switch until the display shows the Eco indicator then move the enter switch to turn it on or off then press enter and the setting is complete."

 

I get excellent mpg on the highway without doing anything special. Perhaps I can do better with some of the tweaks and tips from above.
As for the bugs: get some "Bug Squash" from Poorboys. (poorboysworld.com). Spray it on when you get home, let it emulsify the bugs for a few minutes, then easily clean off the mess. It's the best thing I have found for dead bugs that had the bad judgment to get in the way of my car.

 

How about dried up old bird dropping splatters? they are the worst.

 

I have a hybrid. Around the city I get about 41 and have gotten almost 50 with more hwy. The MPG is almost better in traffic as it will operate in EV mode.

You guys getting close to 40 with gas is great.